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Sahara Davenport
Sahara Davenport, real name Antoine Ashley, was a contestant on Season 2 of RuPaul's Drag Race. Antoine was the long term boyfriend of Season 3 contestant Karl Westerberg (Manila Luzon). Pre-''Drag Race'' Sahara was born in Dallas, TX on December 17, 1984. She began her drag career while studying a Bachelor of Fine Arts at Southern Methodist University, where she met fellow season 2 contestant Shangela Laquifa Wadley. After her graduation, she moved to New York, NY, where she first met her partner Karl. Season 2 Sahara placed Bottom 2 during the main challenge in Episode 1 "Gone With the Window", and had to lipsync against her former classmate Shangela Laquifa Wadley to RuPaul's "Cover Girl (Put the Bass in Your Walk)". Sahara was victorious, retaining her place in the competition. In Episode 2 "Starrbootylicious" Sahara won both the mini-challenge (making over a RuPaul doll into a sex worker), and the main challenge (burlesque performance and cherry pie gift certificate sales). Episode 3 "Country Queens" saw Sahara play Ellie Mae Hatfield in a commercial for the fictional Disco! Extra Greasy Shortening. She was declared safe for her performance. For Episode 4 "The Snatch Game", Sahara chose to impersonate singer and actress Whitney Houston. She was again declared safe for her performance in the challenge. Episode 5 "Here Comes the Bride" required the girls to alter a wedding dress and walk the runway wearing their creation, as well as posing for a wedding portrait both in drag as a woman, and as their male selves. Sahara chose to alter her dress into a tutu, walking the runway en pointe, stating that since she was a child she had dreamed of a Swan Lake ''themed wedding. On the runway, she participated in criticism of Tyra Sanchez by her fellow contestants, stating she thought Tyra lacked manners. During judging, she was criticized for her decision to wear ballet shoes, the judges telling her that while it is impressive while she is in motion, standing flat footed on the runway looked inelegant. She fell into the bottom two for her dress, and lip synced against Morgan McMichaels to Martha Wash's ''Carry On. Sahara's footwear worked to her advantage during the lipsync, allowing her to give a high energy ballet performance, which saw her defeat Morgan and again remain in the competition. In Episode 6 "Rocker Chicks" the contestants were challenged to perform a live rock-version of RuPaul's Ladyboy. Sahara was criticized by the judges for being too effeminate and shrill during her performance, which goaded her to argue on the runway with Merle Ginsberg, later stating that she was unsure what Merle wanted to see from her in the competition. Sahara fell into the bottom two for the third time, and performed against Jujubee to Alannah Myles' Black Velvet. Jujubee was praised for her sultry performance, while Sahara was criticized again by the other contestants for giving another ballet performance, with Raven stating that it did not meld well with the mood of the song. Sahara was unable to defeat Jujubee, and sashayed away placing 7th for her performance. Post-''Drag Race and Death In 2010, Sahara released an EP titled ''Pump With Me. ''Her second single, ''Go Off, peaked at number 35 of Billboard's Hot Dance Club Songs in 2011. Sahara died of heart failure in Johns Hopkins Hospital Baltimore, MD on October 1, 2012 at age 27. She now rests in Rockville, MD and is survived by her partner Karl. Discography ; EP * Pump With Me (2010) ; Singles * "Pump With Me" (2010) * "Go Off" (2011) Category:Contestants